Game device



w. I. KOLM GAME DEVI CE Dec. 6 1938.

-INVENTOR Walter LKoZrw BY Filed March 20, 193'? ATToRNEY P t nted Dec. 6, 1938 GAME DEVICE Walter I. Kolm, New York, N. Y.

Application March 20,

4 Claims.

This invention relates to game devices in general, and particularly to what may be termed a game of skill.

The prime object of this invention is to provide a relatively inexpensive, light, portable device of this kind, which may be readily handled and held in hand by the player, and wherein a missile may be propelled by a. simple mechanism from one place into a pre-determined place, such as a goal, and which propulsion into such predetermined place depends upon the skill of the player.

Another object of this invention is to provide a simple gamedevice in the form of a substantially completely closed box-like structure consisting of front and rear members, closely spaced from one another, and wherein these front and rear members serve as a guide for the missile to be propelled from one place into another.

Another object of this invention is to provide a device of this kind wherein a play scene is imitated, such as a football scene, and wherein portions of the scene form portions of the front member, and wherein the major portion of that a front member is removed and replaced by a transparent sheeting, so as to expose a major portion of the rear member, and wherein the rear member is provided with a missile-receiving aperture and a missile discharge aperture, and wherein the latter is provided with means for retaining a missile until discharged.

Another object of this invention is to provide in a game of this kind a simple missile propelling instrtunentality, operating between the front and rear members, and preferably comprising a portion of a scene ensemble.

The foregoing and still further objects of this invention will become more fully apparent from the following description, and the accompanying drawing, which latter, although forming part of my invention, are not intended to limit me to the actual showing, and in which Fig. 1 is a plan view of the presently preferred form of my device, with portions broken off;

Fig. 2 is across-sectional view taken on lines 22 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 illustrates a fragmental view of a rear member showing a modified construction, (with the front member removed) and Fig. 4 is. a cross-sectional view taken on line it of Fig. 3, additionally including a section through the front member, not shown in the latter figure.

Referring now specifically to the drawing, numeral ill denotes a relatively fiat, box-like structure, the peripheral edges of which are completely closed except for a portion at the right bottom, as indicated at H. The box consists of a front member l2, and a rear member 53, the latter being provided with a missile receiving 1937, Serial N0. 132,038

aperture l4, and a missile discharge port [5. This discharge port preferably consists of an opening cut from the material of the rear member, and wherein the cut out portion I6 remains attached at its bottom, as indicated at I! in Fig. 2, and isopenable as illustrated in that figure in broken lines. The front member consists of a sheet, from which I preferably cut a game scene, such as a football scene in front of a goal, which scene discloses players of the game, in this case three figures in animated position, in front of a goal, preparatory to propelling a missile representing a ball into the goal.

The. portion cut out from the front member is covered with a transparent sheet, indicated at l8, so as to make visible. the background of the scene which may be provided at the rear member, while at the same time permitting the observation of the missile to be propelled into the goal. The figure shown at the extreme right. is provided with a movable leg in the form of a simple lever 19, which projects through the spaced-out portion at the right-hand corner of the game device. This lever is hinged at 26, and is normally held under tension by rubber-band 2|, secured to the structure by a turned-up fin 22, extending internally from the bottom edge of the structure.

At the left hand portion of the game device is illustrated a goal, portions of which are imprinted or otherwise marked on the front member, while another portion thereof may be seen at the rear member. From below discharge port I5, and extending towards the animated player at the right, is a runway 23, for facilitating the rolling down ofmissile 26, by which the latter is returned against lever IS. The right-hand end 25 of the runway 23 serves as stop for lever l9 when the latter is released after having been brought to a cooked position, shown at broken lines. The movement of lever I9 is preferably limited in any suitable manner by providing a stop, such as indicated, for instance, at 26.

At the rear upright portion of the goal, indicated upon the rear member, there is provided ashield or stop member 21, which is designed to stop the missile propelled by lever I9 when incorrectly directed too low. In that case, the missile falls upon guide-way 23 and rolls back towards lever I9, so as to enable the player to repropel the missile. In the modified form of Fig. 3, the internal arrangement of the box-like structure remains practically the same, with the exception of' the missile discharge port, which in this case represents a somewhat larger opening 28, over the outside of which is secured a netting 29, which is attached at both side edges and the bottom edges of opening 28, whereas it is free at the top edge, and may be brought outwards in the manner indicated clearly in Fig. 4 in broken lines. In every other respect, the con- ,lever I 9 to gage the struction of the rear member remains the same as that illustrated and described in Figs. 1 and 2.

Operation Through missile-inserting port M, a missile 24 in the form of a disc is inserted between the rear and front members, and permitted to fall against runway 23, which forms a spacer between the bottom portions of the two members. When the device is held upright and lever I9 moved somewhat to the right, missile 24 will rest against the curved recess representing the top of the right shoe of the figure at the right. From this position missile 24 is propelled, if the device is properly handled, in the direction indicated by broken lines 1, towards the upper corner of the goal, so that the missile passes between the upper edge of the box-like structure and the upper end of shield member 27, which latter is also sufficiently thick to form another spacer between the transparent covering of the front member and the rear member.

When the player has failed to manipulate and propel missile 24 to the position indicated at 24 in broken lines, the missle will be stopped by shield member 21 and will return on the runway towards the player figure at the right. If, on the other hand, the ball is shot through the space between the top edge of the structure and the top edge of shield member 21, it falls behind the shield member and is retained in the compartment which is formed behind the shield member between the latter, the upper portion of runway 23, the left-hand edge of the box-like structure, and the left-hand upper corner portion thereof. When it is desired to remove the disc from behind the shield member, it is a simple matter to bring the game device into a horizontal plane and pry open tongue l6, illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2, or screening or netting 29, shown in Figs. 3 and 4. When then the device is tilted with the lower edge up and the upper edge down, missile 24 will slide out through holes I5 or 28, and may be re-inserted whenever desired through port 14.

The skill by which missile 24 is correctly propelled depends upon the player and the way the game device is held. If, for instance, rubber-band 2! is fairly active and strong, and lever 19 is brought to its right most position, missile 24 will be propelled against the upper edge of the structure without entering the space above the upper end of shield member 21. By holding the game device at an incline, suflicient friction is produced between the missile and the rear member to slow down the speed of the missile. On the other hand, when the game device is held upright, the full force of rubber-band 2| will actuate lever I9, and it depends upon the degree of movement of proper force for propelling the missile into the gap formed between shield member 27 and the upper edge of the structure.

While I have shown in the drawing a game device representing a football scene and football players, it is quite obvious that any other representation may be provided for making the device attractive. Furthermore, it is obvious that while the structure, as illustrated, is intended to be made from cardboard, and the open space of the front member is intended to be made of Cellophane, any other material, such as wood, sheet metal, fibre or any other matter, may be substituted for the cardboard, and glass or Celluloid or any other transparent sheet for the transparent sheet [8 shown, and I therefore reserve for myself the right to make changes and improvem in my invention, without departing from th e scope thereof, as defined in the annexed claims:

I claim:

1. In a portable game device, adapted to be operated while held in the users hands, a substantially box-like, fiat, light-weight structure made of sheet material and having closely spaced, front and rear members of equal peripheral dimensions, and spaced and joined together along their edges, the front member comprising a pictorial representation of a foot ball game scene, wherein portions of the player figures and parts of the scene are cut out from the material of the front member, a transparent sheet secured to the inner face of the front member and covering the cut out portions thereof, the rear member comprising a continuous sheet of material, a substantially wedge-shaped spacer provided at the lower edge of the device between the members, the bottomedge of the spacer being parallel with a portion of the bottom edge of the device, the upper edge of the spacer being inclined from one side of the device towards its opposite side and serving as return runway for a missile, a goal representation provided at the one side of the device in which the broader end of the spacer is located, a missile stop in the form of a bar, forming a part of the goal representation, extending from the inclined edge of the spacer towards the upper edge of the device, but being distanced from the latter edge to provide a passage for a missile, one of the player figures being animated and being disposed at the opposite end to that having the goal representation, the leg of that figure forming a missile propelling lever, operative between the front and rear members and pivotally associated with the latter, said lever extending through an opening provided in the bottom edge of the device, the lower end of the lever cooperating with the narrow end of the spacer, resilient means secured below the spacer and engaging said lever and normally urging the latter against the narrow end of the spacer, a back stop for the lever, provided at the corner of the device below the figure, for limiting the cooking movement of the lever preparatory to propelling a missile.

2. In a portable game device, as set forth in claim 1, and missile discharge means provided within said goal representation, behind the missile stop, and missile reception means disposed in front of the missile stop in the vicinity of the animated player figure.

3. In a portable game device, as set forth in claim 1, and missile discharge means provided within said goal representation, behind the missile stop, and missile reception means disposed in front of the missile stop in the vicinity of the animated player figure, said missile discharge means comprising a flap cut from the material of the rear member and openable at the top.

4. In a portable game device, as set forth in claim 1, and missile discharge means provided within said goal representation, behind the missile stop, and missile reception means disposed in front of the missile stop in the vicinity of the animated player figure, said missile discharge means consisting of an aperture in the rear member and covered with screening, the latter being secured to the bottom and sides of the aperture and being free at the top.

WALTER I. KOLM. 

